McAdoo Catholic Elementary Will Close

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated.

Please enable Javascript to watch this video

MCADOO---School officials announced Monday McAdoo Catholic Elementary will close at the end of this school year.

The school has been around for more than half a century, but after a five month study, church leaders decided close the doors because of declining enrollment and not enough money.

The school is in the Allentown Catholic Diocese.

There are about 90 students in the school, 7 full time teachers in grades K through eighth grades.

"It's a wonderful school and it's a very hard decision to make but lookins at the resources we have available and all that we realize that we just can't sustain it," said Msgr. William Baker.

Some people called the news sad, but said they understand why the school has to close.

"I've gone to the school, I went to the school about 50 years ago and I worry because I live right next to it and I don't know what's going to happen to the property when it closes down. The other thing I worry about is if they keep the school open, it's going to drag the church down because there's not enough money to keep the school and the church," said Andy Johnson.

Others called the news devastating.

John O'Lear's daughter is in the 7th grade at McAdoo Catholic Elementary.

"My daughter came home with a sealed envelope which they weren't allowed to open until she got home and I opened it and I read it and I was angry, I mean, it's been there for what I understand 88 years, my father is 81 and he went to school there, my two older sisters, and my brother went there and I also did," said O'Lear.

"I'm devastated, I don't want to say anything bad about anyone because that's not how I am, I think there could have been ways that the Allentown could helped us," he added.

Parish leaders said students at McAdoo Catholic who chose to attend Catholic school next year wil be eligible for a thousand dollars off tuition.